Getting A Daith Piercing
Most people opt to get piercings simply for aesthetics purposes. They’re only in it for the looks and the cool factor. Some piercings, however, can serve a deeper purpose than visual appearance – and the daith piercing is one of those.
While daith piercings are also considered by many to be attractive, some people who get them couldn’t care less about their appearance. They decide to get them based on word of mouth that daith piercings can help migraine sufferers as an alternative to repetitive acupuncture. It’s even been suggested that they can help with anxiety.
Continue reading to learn all the important bits before deciding whether this type of beautiful piercing is right for you, and whether it could be a potentially good migraine treatment to try.
What Is A Daith Piercing?
A daith piercing is a perforation through the daith, which is a little area of cartilage in the inner ear. The daith sits about midway on the ear, just above the ear canal. It can be a hard spot for piercers to reach comfortably because of how small this area is, and how it curves around.
Can Daith Piercings Help With Migraines?
The reason why a connection exists between daith piercings and migraine relief is all down to the practice of acupuncture. Because the ear contains various pressure points, acupuncture has been used for hundreds of years to trigger these points in a bid to reduce migraine attacks.
One of the supposed locations that help most to relieve headaches and migraines is the daith area, although this has never been backed by science. However, it is this long-held belief that founded the link between the daith piercing and migraine reduction.
Although various studies have been conducted that seemingly conclude that migraine symptoms improve after getting a daith piercing, it was stated that more clinical tests need to be carried out before any definitive link can be established. Placebo effects can also cause anomalies in data within studies surrounding daith piercings and migraine relief.
What Happens During The Procedure?
Your piercer may ask you to lay down and turn your head away from them so they can reach the awkward area at a good angle. However, some piercers prefer to do the work while you are sitting up.
When you’re ready, they’ll use a sterile hollow needle to do the piercing, and they may use some medical clamps to help with the procedure. They’ll wipe away any blood that pools around in your ear following the piercing, which should be minimal.
As the needle will be passing through tough cartilage, you may feel a fairly heavy pressure, although the needle should still pass through without too much effort.
Once that cartilage has been pierced, they’ll put the jewelry in and give you directions for what to do for the next few weeks; then you’ll be on your way. Daith piercings don’t come with thousands of aftercare instructions, so you won’t have to remember too much.
How Much Do They Hurt?
Daith piercings are generally more painful than the average lobe piercing. This is because the needle has to be worked through a tough fold of cartilage at the front of the ear canal, compared to the soft flesh of an earlobe. Therefore, you generally experience more pain when you’re in the chair. The recovery can also be slightly painful for a week or two, although this varies between people.
How Much Does a Daith Piercing Cost?
Daith piercings cost more than many other piercings because they are more difficult for the piercer to perform. They can take longer to do than some other piercings, too, which also accounts for the higher price.
For most daith piercings, you can expect to pay in the range of $50 to $100. Just how much you pay, though, will depend on the skills of your piercer, how in-demand they are, and the location of the piercing shop, as the more people who use the shop, the more expensive it’s likely to be.
What To Do Before Getting A Daith Piercing
Don’t forget to put your hair up. If you don’t do it before you get to the shop, you’ll end up having to do it while you’re there.
You should also grab a bite to eat before heading to the parlor to minimize the risk of dizziness when the needle pierces the flesh.
Finally, make sure a really want this type of piercing. If you’re getting a daith piercing for migraines, you need to fully understand that it may not be a magic bullet for you. If you’re only doing it because you’re convinced you’ll be automatically cured of all painful migraines and headaches, you should realize that it’s unlikely to happen like that. It would be wise to research further into acupuncture, and how it relates to daith piercings in terms of migraine prevention.
Aftercare & Cleaning
As with all cartilage piercings, your new wound benefit greatly from having a twice-a-day warm saline or sea salt soak treatment. It will help keep infections at bay, and the warm water you use for it should also give you some soothing relief. Be sure to soak all around the fold to ensure the whole area is efficiently cleansed.
Important Ear Piercing Aftercare Steps You Must Ensure You Take
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You should soak your daith piercing in the morning and before you go to bed for at least a few weeks until you feel your piercing begins to seal up inside. If you’re truly dedicated to your aftercare, it would be a good idea to do it until your daith piercing is fully healed.
However, if you’d rather not make your own daith solution, there are a number of specialty piercing aftercare options on the market which are formulated to help your new piercing heal as quickly and efficiently as possible.
The best aftercare product I’ve personally used is the After Inked Piercing Aftercare Spray. Not only is it vegan, but it’s also completely alcohol and additive-free. The solution works well on all skin types including sensitive skin, and it comes in a generously-sized mist-spraying bottle for easy application. When using it from the very start of the healing process, the spray helps to decrease healing times and aims to eliminate any lingering pain or soreness.​
Even if your piercing is irritating you, try not to scratch it or play around with it, and if you do have to touch it for whatever reason, wash your hands with plenty of warm, soapy water first, and don’t apply too much pressure to the area.
Be especially wary of getting any harsh shampoos, conditioners or hair-styling products on the daith area because they tend to be drying and irritating. Instead of your normal shampoo, you might want to consider using baby shampoo for the first week or two to wash your hair.
How Do They Take To Heal?
It can take anywhere from four months to 12 months before your daith piercing is fully healed, although many people will heal long before that timeline. You can make it a quicker healing process by taking great care of your piercing and ensuring you don’t snag it on your clothes or your hairbrush. The more you leave it alone, the better chance you’ll have of it healing sooner.
It’s best not to take out the initial jewelry until your piercing has fully healed. It can be torture having to wait that long, but you don’t want to undo all the healing you’ve been doing by taking it out too soon.
Finally, avoid swimming or anything else that may cause the area to become saturated with water, as this could delay healing. Sunburn around the piercing should be avoided at all costs, too.
Risks & Precautions
When you get your daith pierced, you run the same risks as you do with all other piercings – the possibility of infections, or the chance of getting hepatitis or HIV from an unsanitary needle. The possibility of contracting a disease is a very small risk, but one that can be eliminated by making sure you’re using a responsible piercer in a hygienic environment. If you have anybody piercing you that you believe may be infected, it’s important to receive prompt medical advice.
Another not so common risk you could run into with this type of piercing is the chance of getting what is known as cauliflower ear, which is a medical condition caused by a lack of blood supply to the cartilage, normally due to pressure from pus buildup around the site.
When this happens, the way your ear looks can start to change. You may end up with a permanent deformity, which is called cauliflower ear because of its resemblance to the vegetable and its puffy, bumpy appearance. Surgical treatment is usually the only option to reverse this damage.
Daith Jewelry
With a daith piercing, you can wear many types of curved barbells, but rings are probably the most common type of jewelry amongst other people.
Rings are also the way you should go during the recovery phase. They won’t snag on your clothing as much as barbells will. Plus, it will give your piercing extra space if you have significant swelling.
Summary
The daith piercing isn’t for everyone. You have to be committed to a long recovery and a fair amount of discomfort to take on this piercing. But for many, the stunning visual appearance, and potential life-changing migraine relief that can come from a daith piercing is more than worth the pain and cost.​
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